. >> pelley: while our attention was on newtown, connecticut, in washington there was real progress on avoiding the so-called fiscal cliff. that's the big tax increases for most americans and across-the-board spending cuts that would kick in in just two weeks. major garrett is at the white house for us tonight. major? >> reporter: scott, top white house advisors tell us house speaker john boehner broke the logjam when he agreed to raise some income tax rates. this comes with a price, one that president obama is not yet agreed to pay. the president and boehner met in the oval office for just under an hour. in a call to mr. obama friday just after his statement on the connecticut school massacre boehner for the first time agreed to raise income tax rates he proposed raising the top rate from 35% to 39.6% on households earning one million dollars a year or more. mr. obama wants to raise rates on householdss making $250,000 or more. congressional sources say boehner has most house republicans with him. here's the catch, republicans want mr. obama to agree to one trillion in spending cuts,